Historically, both the Six Sigma and Lean methodologies have existed to serve the purpose of improving the operational effectiveness in a variety of businesses.  In the past, they have stood alone as methodologies.  The current trend is to combine Six Sigma and Lean, providing a greater toolset from which operational waste can be identified, measured, and improved.  Though the concepts behind Six Sigma and Lean are different, the two can, and arguably should, be used jointly.

Six Sigma Reduces Variability

The goal of Six Sigma is to reduce the variability in a process in order to deliver practically defect-free products and services.  Six Sigma relies heavily on statistical analysis to achieve gains in quality and typically has a direct impact to the bottom line.  The Six Sigma methodology has a ‘scientific method-like’ approach called DMAIC, which stands for:

It is often difficult to define, never mind embrace, a silver lining from occurrences that are so profoundly negative. However, government can, or more pointedly should, greatly benefit from our current, prolonged economic downturn.

In short, government at all levels (Federal, State and Local) is required to change its overall operational model – some entities already have or are well down the path. Operations, processes, and most importantly stakeholder/citizen interactions must change to accommodate current and future budget constraints. All of these changes must occur while providing citizens with enhanced customer services.